


Escape the Night Reviews

by TheRealTea13



Category: Escape the Night (Web Series)
Genre: Gen, No Plot/Plotless, Reviews, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-19
Updated: 2020-06-04
Packaged: 2020-07-08 08:49:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19866826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheRealTea13/pseuds/TheRealTea13
Summary: I go season by season and do a review for them.





	1. The Screaming ‘20s

**Part 1: Characters**

The main ensemble cast of Shane Dawson, Andrea Brooks, Justine Ezarik, GlowZell Green, Sierra Furtado, Matthew Haag, Timothy DeLaGhetto, Lele Pons, Eva Gutowski, Oli White and Joey Graceffa are all great for various reasons, one being they feel like people. Due to the unscripted nature of the show characters react and interact like real people in real conversations, and the show is all the better for it. The only real problem I have is that due to the nature of people getting eliminated early on, some characters don’t have as much time to grow and develop as others. This is by no fault of the characters but, because Andrea and Justine were taken out so early, they have very few note worthy moments. 

Side characters in this season are almost completely wasted. We get the absolute bare basics for context in the episode, but literally nothing beyond that. Look at Calvin, we know he’s a murderer and... well that’s kind of it. We don’t know the why for his murders or why he makes them into art exhibits with mannequins. We know just a much as the characters, which is zero.

**Part 2: Plot**

This season has easily the least fleshed out plot. We know Joey receives a house, invites his friends, and that the house is trapped by evil that was being controlled by Arthur. It all feels very cut and paste. The first half of the season is Character X did Thing Y for Bird Mask Guy to hide the artifact, and its up to our heroes to get the artifact. The second half is Character X needs Thing Y why because they did Bad Thing Z. After a while it just gets boring to watch. However that’s not to say it’s not a good watch. The characters do grow and change as the story progresses and as the herd thins, it’s easy to pick a favorite and root for them. It also has the best end of season plot twist with Arthur being the one in league with the evil was something I didn’t see coming and the staff hunting the remaining guests was exhilarating to watch. Betrayal at the House on the Hill is definitely in the top 5 episodes.

**Part 3: Challenges**

Season 1 has some of the most scary and well designed challenges of the series. They all feel like party games on crack. The only one I have a problem with is The Exorcism. I just don’t like the dynamic of one person doing practically nothing and the other doing most of the work, and that person gets to choose who dies. That setup works better as a partner challenge, which obviously doesn’t work as an exorcism.

**Part 4: Final Thoughts**

Season 1 definitely has its issues. From non-existent character development to boring plot, it’s not the greatest. However it is very enjoyable to watch. The show knew what it wanted to be, and the kinks that popped up along the way were minor issues at worst. It had SO much potential and for the most part, it delivered. We did get a show about YouTubers solving problems but at the end of the day, that’s really all it was. That’s why my final rating for this season is a 6/10


	2. The Museum of Death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We’re going out of order and jumping to the ‘40s

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was really tired when I wrote this, I know I rambled a lot in here.

**Part 1: Characters**

My feelings toward the characters are mixed. On one hand it’s nice to have them back but on the other, the stakes just aren’t as high. I know I should feel the opposite way but you aren’t rooting for them to live this time, you are rooting for them to come back to life, which makes the world of difference. While the cast of Justine Ezarik, Timothy DeLaGhetto, DeStorm Power, Tana Mongeau, Gabbie Hanna, Alex Wassabi, Colleen Ballinger, Rosanna Pansino and not all star Bretman Rock are all phenomenal choices, certain fan favorites are missing, such as Safiya Nygaard and Shane Dawson. Also the choice to include Bretman instead of another all star, in my opinion, was a bad choice. Don’t get me wrong, Bretman was a fantastic guest, but I would have rather seen him with all new guests, instead of missing an all star. His reason for being there doesn’t even make sense. Nikita told him there was going to be cute boys and he just agreed, no questions asked, and the SAE let him? Is he apart of the SAE? We don’t know. The over representation of season two also is an odd choice. Four guests while everyone else gets only two? It makes the whole season seem weird. It also brings up another point, this is the only season I don’t believe the deaths weren’t somewhat scripted. You’re telling me they all managed to die in a way that oddly mirrored their last death and in a similar order? I don’t think so. I think the they’re was an over representation just so they could pull the double death in episode five. In this season’s favor however, Tana was really a standout character, playing a variety of emotions and building off her season two arc, which no one else did. I really love her this season. Other standouts include Rosanna and Gabbie. Both manage to play to the world amazingly.

Side characters are actually pretty interesting this time around. With The Emperor’s interesting dynamic with his mom and The Mummy’s whole murder arc feeling really good and being a great start to the season. However, that’s not to say they are all good. Garuda and Kali are so underdeveloped it hurts to watch that episode and Scheherazade is about as interesting as a blank piece of paper. The Sorceress and Mortimer did get a cool character arc, if a little basic.

** Part 2: Plot **

It’s stupid. Like really stupid. Joey and Bretman go to free the guests from Purgatory and it’s stupid. Like it’s established pretty early that the guests have no idea they are in the museum until Joey breaks the exhibit, so it’s not like they were suffering. In fact all but one of them are now facing eternal punishment in Hell because of Joey. Like this rescue mission was a flop and I felt no resolution that a whiny brat and someone that wasn’t even supposed to be there in the first place got out. It goes back to the whole thing of its who deserves to come back to life, not who deserves to keep living, which is an entirely different dynamic. Also The Collector has the stupidest back story of all the main villains. Why does she keep them in a museum? What does she gain from this? Maybe I missed something but she is such a dull villain and never felt like a threat, because we never see her until the final few episodes where she dies, then comes back to life to fist fight The Sorceress. Even in the cold opens it was the grunts killing everyone off and The Collector that profited. Also the episode nine twist that The Sorceress is *gasp* evil was very overhyped by the ETN social media team. But as for the cliffhanger? Well I don’t really know. No literally I don’t understand it. We learn at the top of the episode, Pandora’s Box turns you into your soul’s true form, so why does Joey get turned to ash and trapped inside? Does he have no soul? Is he gone for good? We did see the eyes in the box “turn off” so to say. It is too big of an unanswered question for my taste. 

Lastly, the premise of this show doesn’t really lend itself to an all star season. How did Colleen have a baby if she’s dead. The show plays it for laughs and hopes you don’t think about it too much, but it’s pretty big. Also the characters refer to their deaths maybe once or twice and never say another thing about them. Or any other event from their season. We got a brief mention of Jesse from Gabbie and Tana in episode five and DeStorm says his sacrifice is for Lauren, but name another character that is mentioned that doesn’t physically appear.

** Part 3: Challenges **

These are some of the weakest challenges of the entire series. From episodes 1-6 it’s “do this one super simple task” 7-9 are good though but that’s way too long to wait. Like I was so disappointed by them it’s part of the reason I thought this season was more heavily scripted. The time limit in challenges has always been anywhere from 30-60 minutes but in episode 5? Five minutes tick tock bitches. Like it felt like they knew who was going to die so no effort was placed into the buildup.

** Part 4: Final Thoughts **

****This by far the weakest season, which is disappointing considering the potential. With low stakes, a boring villain and overall a case of sacrificing the soul of the show in order to up the scale. The monsters were crazy and super well designed, but that shouldn’t be the only leg you have to stand on. It could have been so much better, and I really wanted it to be, but overall I just can’t get myself to care. It hurts that this season is this bad especially because it comes hot off the heels of the master piece that was season three. I’m not sure what exactly happened but they really dropped the ball. Here’s hoping season 5 can set things right again. My final rating for this season is a 3/10.


	3. New Evil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Season 2!!!

**Part 1: Characters**

The main ensemble cast of Joey Graceffa, Lauren Riihimaki, Jesse Wellens, DeStorm Power, Liza Koshy, Tana Mongeau, Gabbie Hanna, Alex Wasabi, Tyler Oakley and Andrea Russet are all really good choices. Even the early outs make a very good impression. This season has some of the best character arcs of all seasons. DeStorm and Gabbie’s fling, Alex’s emotional breakdown and Tyler going from one of the weaker guests to one of the strongest we’re all fun to watch. I do have to mention that this season, because it has so many comedians in the cast, seems to never take itself too seriously, which hurts the season overall. It could have had some of the most down right scary moments, and kind of does, but the guests seemed to always crack a joke, or it would cut to a funny confessional, every time any build up was happening. That being said, this cast still holds up as one of the best. These YouTubers were, and still are really big outside of ETN. Also #JesseForAllStars2

The side characters are my absolute favorite of the entire series. The monsters are all so different and interesting. Jorogumo, The Ice Witch, The Devourer, and even Cedric and The Vampires look phenomenal! The only ones I dislike are the Werewolves. It’s just so clearly a man in a suit that it kinda takes me out of it. Alison is still my favorite assistant to guests we’ve had. Fight me Calliope stans. She was willing to betray her father and her kind to help them and when a Lieutenant went back on a deal, she called them out and even died for them. The Sorceress is also my favorite main villain. Everyone else just wanted to kill them and keep their tiny piece of land, but this homegirl wanted to be empress over ALL TIME!!! She was even planning on killing the winners from last season! And she didn’t even need to! Her design is just so powerful. She looks so important and severe and even sexy. Altogether a great bunch. Quick honorable mention goes to Jet Pack Girl

**Part 2: Plot**

Season 2’s plot is one of the best, if a little not fleshed out. We clearly know The Sorceress’ plan, and what our guests have to do to stop it. It’s clear and it’s concise. I also like that The Sorceress is a constant presence throughout the season. We see her multiple times outside of just the cold opens, which makes her feel like a more immediate threat. While individual episodes might be a bit formulaic, I think the individual theming and challenges are enough to keep it fresh and interesting. Alison sacrificing herself for the guests was a very sad moment and honestly made me tear up. The end of season twist also really came out of no where, in a good way. We’ve seen Joey be the untouchable hero and to see him get killed was really shocking. And girl when he gasped back to life after Andrea and Tyler walked away, one of the best twists we’ve ever had! It immediately got you excited for the next season to see how it was all going to shake down. 

**Part 3: Challenges**

Really good and really scary! Most all of them have multiple steps and the ones that don’t have good reason. I will complain that Episode 4 and Episode 9 had practically the same challenge of “the gem is somewhere in this large collection of things that are not the gem” Notable standouts are Episode 2, Episode 5, and Episode 7. This season also has some of the most violent and shocking deaths. Getting your heart ripped out by a robotic monster? Getting nearly cut in half by an ice warrior? Having all your blood drained by vampires? All terrifying and almost hard to watch.

**Part 4: Final Thoughts**

Season 2 really step up the game from Season 1. Amazing characters, great plot, and interesting challenges. Definitely makes for one the best seasons this show has had. The monsters were super well designed and executed which really made this season come alive. This season has some of the highest highs, but some of the lowest lows, which is why my final rating for this season is an 8/10


	4. Updates BABY

Hi there! Long time no see everyone. I am here to announce that the season 3 review is coming, I just have to finish my rewatch. I don’t know when but before Tuesday for sure.   
  


Next a question, would you guys be interested in more reviews? It could be more in depth reviews of things from Escape the Night such as going death by death and giving it a score or reviewing each and every challenge. Or maybe possibly expanding beyond Escape the Night. Just a thought, let me know what you guys would like.


	5. The Carnival of the Cursed

**Part 1: Characters**

The main cast of Joey Graceffa, JC Caylen, Roi Fabito, Teala Dunn, Colleen Ballinger, Safiya Nygaard, Rosanna Pansino, Manny MUA, Nikita Dragun and MatPat are in my opinion, the best we’ve ever had. Each and every character was memorable and felt important. Whereas other seasons it felt like the first few people were just there to die, this season’s early outs are still really interesting. JC being a strong competitor being taken out too early, Roi’s sacrifice and Teala... ok so maybe not all of them. Also, because of the cast’s theater background, the characters feel like characters and not like YouTubers, which I actually appreciate. Now every person grows and changes over the season instead of a select few, which is nice.

Side characters have a very interesting dynamic this season. Most everyone we meet is immediately corrupted by The Carnival Master, which is really cool. It shows how powerful he is while also setting up the episode. Also as the season goes on, the guardian me get closer to The Carnival Master. Starting with just some random corrupted townsfolk and ending with his daughter. The helpers Calliope and Mortimer are also really interesting! I think they are a great duo and were very fun to watch until Mortimer betrayed them... even down to the few townspeople we see like Maria are memorable.

** Part 2: Plot **

This season’s plot is good if a bit formulaic. The Carnival Master being hellbent in destroying this one small town is a little weird but overall this season just works. He comes in and corrupts the people of the town to help him and then just straight up kills two powerful members of the SAE. Like I mentioned earlier the fact that as the season goes on the guardians get closer to The Carnival Master makes the season feel like it’s actually moving forward with bigger steaks.

** Part 3: Challenges **

These are literally my favorite group of challenges. Every single one is different and feels like either person could win. My favorites are episodes 2,4 and 7. All of them fit the monster and were well designed. The first few deaths feel a little rushed and not really focused on, like in JC’s the death wasn’t even the main focus of the shot.which is weird but all together bit that big of a deal.

** Part 4: Final Thoughts **

Season three marks a noticeable change in the show. Whereas seasons 1 and 2 felt more like YouTubers being filmed in an escape room, season 3 felt like a genuine TV show. The main cast felt like real characters in this world, actually having these things happen to them. The side characters felt like real people with real stories. The Carnival Master was ominous and cool, and the guardians were all so different and actually scary. They were also phenomenally designed. The plot was even cool with Joey hiding his death from the other guests, The Carnival Master being hellbent on destroying the town, even being shown as stronger than the SAE. Joey and Colleen’s drama. Nikita and Manny vs. Matt and Rosanna. All around phenomenal. My final rating for this season is 10/10. This is what Escape the Night should be.


	6. Rating the Deaths: Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Giving all major character deaths a score from 1-10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, the world is crazy and I am barely hanging on.

You know how this works so let’s skip the intros.

Shane Dawson “The Renegade”

Cause of death: Poisoned

Score: 10/10

For Shane, his score is less about the death itself and more about what the death did for the series. It set the tone brilliantly for the series, was a nice soft intro to the death challenges and allowed us to get the exposition of the season.

Andrea Brooks “The Fixer”

Cause of death: Asphyxiation from poison gas

Score: 9/10

Andrea’s death is really one of my favorites. The way you see her hands slam against the glass and then slowly get weaker until her head falls against it is surprisingly theatrical for this early. And the zoom in on her face afterwords is chilling. Overall very good.

Justine Ezarik “The Gambler”

Cause of death: Suffocation from being buried alive

Score: 10/10

This is one of the first moments I think of when I think of Escape the Night. It’s so dark so messed up and it just works perfectly. The way Justine runs mixed with her begging and sobbing really hits you. The entire sequence is truly heartbreaking.

GloZell Green “The Jazz Singer”

Cause of death: Chocking on her own blood

Score: 6/10

As the first betrayal of the series you’d expect more from this. All she really does is wiggle around and die on the floor. The other guests don’t make it any better (looking at you Tim) I think this is the first weak death of the series.

Sierra Furtado “The Heiress”

Cause of death: Demonic possession

Score: 6/10

This one is largely carried by how sad it is. It’s a very simple death as nothing really happens. Matt wraps the rosary around her head, she stiffens, gasps, and falls over dead. I don’t know if it would have been more or less sad if Matt did it intentionally but the one we got was gut wrenching 

Matthew Haag “The Professor”

Cause of Death: Poisoned twice

Score: 4/10

Listen, we all know Matt was an arrogant asshole who only thought of himself, but even if you ignore all that, this death is easily the worst of the season. A. It’s a repeat and B. He never made me want to see him live. I will give him props in that knocking over the doll house was a cool visual and also kinda symbolic.

Timothy DeLaGhetto

Cause of death: Self inflicted gun shot wound to the head

Score: 7/10

Tim’s death is deceptively simple. It’s quick and not all that bloody but the premise is so cool. A war game mixed with Russian Roulette is terrifying and weirdly accurate for how wars are fought. Also Eva’s scream is just *chef’s kiss*  
  


Lele Pons

Cause of death: Electrocution 

Score: 9/10

This is another one of those deaths that is great in its own, but the lead up to it is even better. She was tortured before being killed in one of the most painful ways possible. Speaking as someone who’s been fried a few times, it is not pleasant.   
  


Overall season score 7/10


End file.
